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Amazon to stop accepting UK Visa credit cards

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Re: Amazon to stop accepting UK Visa credit cards

#281

Post by MomoXenosaga »

mrec wrote: post #43
em10fan wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Quite the opposite in the UK, at least over the last 10 years or so. 99% of debit cards are Visa, and most people buying stuff on Amazon would be using a debit card, folks only really use credit cards for large purchases and things like travel, here. Even when it comes to credit cards, I would say Mastercard has like a large chunk - like 80% in terms of institutions (but who knows in terms of actual customers), I wou…

> most people buying stuff on Amazon would be using a debit card, folks only really use credit cards for large purchases Huh? I'm in the UK, have been an Amazon customer for over 20 years and have always used a credit card for everything. I didn't even know you could use a debit card, and can't see any reason you'd want to. Paid off in full every month, better consumer protection, what's not to like?

Credit card fees?

Re: Amazon to stop accepting UK Visa credit cards

#282

Post by rlpb »

input_sh wrote: post #79
mrec wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> most people buying stuff on Amazon would be using a debit card, folks only really use credit cards for large purchases Huh? I'm in the UK, have been an Amazon customer for over 20 years and have always used a credit card for everything. I didn't even know you could use a debit card, and can't see any reason you'd want to. Paid off in full every month, better consumer protection, what's not to like?

Here's why: two debit cards, one for receiving money, one for spending money. Automated payment from the 1st one to the 2nd one once a month with a fixed amount you expect to spend in a month. Nothing to pay off, you're spending your own money, can't be overcharged, can't go below zero, if someone leaks your spending card they can't touch the majority of your money, no scummy business practices. Never owned a credit…

> can't be overcharged, can't go below zero

In the UK, it's really hard to get a bank account where they'll do that. Instead they'll pay it, call it an "unauthorised overdraft" and then charge you for that. This is their business model - it's how they make sufficient income to operate.

There are "basic bank accounts" which don't provide a credit facility, but these only exist because people with poor credit histories can't get bank accounts otherwise, and the regulator has threatened to enforce their availability otherwise. However since this means that there currently isn't any rule, the banks make it very difficult for an ordinary person (with good credit) to open a "basic bank account".

Re: Amazon to stop accepting UK Visa credit cards

#283

Post by 3guk »

tchalla wrote: post #195
3guk wrote: post #158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh don't get me started with the EC card shenanigans - I've had so many problems in Munich with shops demanding an EC card as the only form of card accepted. Drives me crazy that in some cases it's either that (which is unavailable to non German residents) or cash....

There's a reason for those so called "shenanigans". The merchant fees for EC card are the lowest amongst all cards. Pretty much all banks issue EC cards. Earlier, merchant fees could not be passed along to the consumer. Earlier this year, a change in regulation meant these fees would now be passed on to the consumer [0]. I foresee a future where there will be two prices (1) Payment w/o credit card and (2) Payment wit…

I would completely understand if other types of debit card were accepted - but at least in the vast majority of my arguments with local shop owners, Visa Debit or Mastercard Debit are not accepted - cards which are otherwise accepted globally.

I understand if the the fees accepted need to be added on and covered by the consumer who wants to pay with the most convenient form of payment they have - but again in Germany that's not even a possibility. I find it quite strange that it's one of the only places (if not the only place) in Western Europe where you struggle to pay with either cash or a card type that is only available in the country.

Re: Amazon to stop accepting UK Visa credit cards

#284

Post by 5754797 »

InsomniacL wrote: post #269

Visa Revenue: US$21 billion (2020) Net income: US$10 billion (2020) Amazon Revenue: $425 billion (2020) Net income: US$21 billion (2020) It would seem the duopoly between Visa and Mastercard is very profitable, yet their fee's are constantly rising. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_Inc . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazon_(company)

So Amazon should just buy visa and be done with it.

Re: Amazon to stop accepting UK Visa credit cards

#286

Post by chrisseaton »

jdiez17 wrote: post #62
mrec wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> most people buying stuff on Amazon would be using a debit card, folks only really use credit cards for large purchases Huh? I'm in the UK, have been an Amazon customer for over 20 years and have always used a credit card for everything. I didn't even know you could use a debit card, and can't see any reason you'd want to. Paid off in full every month, better consumer protection, what's not to like?

> what's not to like? Well, the predatory business model, for one. The reason your credit card company can offer you "better consumer protection" and other benefits is because they count on a percentage of people not paying off their debt in time (and thus making more money out of them). Also, I personally wouldn't want "better consumer protection" to be mediated by a private company. That should just be the default.

> Also, I personally wouldn't want "better consumer protection" to be mediated by a private company. That should just be the default.

You’re confused - in the UK the better consumer protection with a credit card is the law. On debit cards it’s at their discretion.

Re: Amazon to stop accepting UK Visa credit cards

#287

Post by MomoXenosaga »

c16 wrote: post #141
input_sh wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Here's why: two debit cards, one for receiving money, one for spending money. Automated payment from the 1st one to the 2nd one once a month with a fixed amount you expect to spend in a month. Nothing to pay off, you're spending your own money, can't be overcharged, can't go below zero, if someone leaks your spending card they can't touch the majority of your money, no scummy business practices. Never owned a credit…

The flip side to this is using something like an Amex which offers insurance, points, business lounge access and much more. Set up the card with diret debit (much like your automated payments) and never spend above what you can afford. You now have perks, points, insurance, consumer protection and still zero worries.

You are paying for these "perks" and no I don't need insurance when I'm buying an electronic toothbrush from Amazon thank you very much.

Re: Amazon to stop accepting UK Visa credit cards

#288

Post by ahoka »

pittmajp wrote: post #152
input_sh wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Here's why: two debit cards, one for receiving money, one for spending money. Automated payment from the 1st one to the 2nd one once a month with a fixed amount you expect to spend in a month. Nothing to pay off, you're spending your own money, can't be overcharged, can't go below zero, if someone leaks your spending card they can't touch the majority of your money, no scummy business practices. Never owned a credit…

What about all the free money you're leaving off the table in miles and cash back? I've had a credit card for about 3 years, and while it isn't much, I've never paid a dime in interest and I'm up roughly $800.

Big corporations giving people free money sound kinda unbelievable, don't you think? They must actually make money on card holders for this to be profitable. The obvious way is that some people will overdraw sooner or later, the other is that people with credit cards simply tend to spend more (some say about 10-15%). The average credit card debt in the USA is more that 6000$.

Re: Amazon to stop accepting UK Visa credit cards

#289

Post by chrisseaton »

gambiting wrote: post #225
sparks1970 wrote: post #160

Earlier quoted context omitted.

UK here, I use credit card for almost everything: 1. (As everyone says) consumer protection. I can dispute a charge to a CC and am not standing out the cash (unlike debit) 2. Debit transactions don't have any inherent limit. The bank might flag a very large transaction but once a debit transaction is underway it can't be stopped. I had > £10k stolen from my online account via a debit transaction and though the bank m…

Just to address those points. 1) I've been able to dispute payments on my debit cards without any issue, they were always reversed instantly by the bank. Maybe I've been lucky, I don't know. And for the "bank is liable for your purchases" thing - that doesn't apply to anything under £100 either. 2) That is a stupid limitation of UK banks, not debit cards in general. I have a bank account in Poland and for the debit c…

> never had a credit card in the UK with any rewards whatsoever

I used to fly to New York in first for free once a year on my reward points before COVID.

Re: Amazon to stop accepting UK Visa credit cards

#290

Post by libeclipse »

em10fan wrote: post #12
barrkel wrote: post #2

I cannot believe that Visa transaction overhead would be higher than Amex - there's something going on behind the scenes here. I don't think this is the end of it either, it smells like a negotiation threat. Visa have a larger market share overall (80%, including debit cards [1]) but Mastercard leads in credit cards. Amex has always been fairly niche because it's not accepted everywhere. [1] https://www.statista.com/…

Quite the opposite in the UK, at least over the last 10 years or so. 99% of debit cards are Visa, and most people buying stuff on Amazon would be using a debit card, folks only really use credit cards for large purchases and things like travel, here. Even when it comes to credit cards, I would say Mastercard has like a large chunk - like 80% in terms of institutions (but who knows in terms of actual customers), I wou…

Most of your comment is simply not true
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